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Dr. Robert Barr addresses the city schools' convocation. |
Friday, August 14, 2009
Education is “the ultimate civil right” and the only “door of opportunity” for youth to succeed in today’s economy, an education speaker told school employees and community leaders Thursday morning.
Dr. Robert Barr, an author and international speaker on poverty and education, addressed about 430 faculty and staff of Martinsville Schools during a professional development day at Albert Harris Elementary School.
He gave the keynote speech at the back-to-school convocation, a gathering of the entire division staff, where 29 new teachers were introduced.
The term “high-poverty, high-performing schools” no longer is an oxymoron, Barr told the gathering. He outlined strategies used by schools across the country to ensure that all children learn successfully and can compete in the modern work force, regardless of their backgrounds.
Barr also spoke earlier that morning to school and area leaders during a leadership breakfast sponsored by The Harvest Foundation at Chatmoss Country Club. The audience included city officials, school board members, representatives from New College Institute, Patrick Henry Community College, Old Dominion University, the Martinsville-Henry County Chamber of Commerce, area businesses and churches.
These community partnerships are important, Barr told them, because, “Schools cannot do this alone. We’re all in this together.”
Most students do not realize how the economy has changed from “the world of work” to “the age of the mind,” he said, meaning that jobs involving manual labor are becoming obsolete, being outsourced or replaced with machines. Instead, jobs in the modern work force require more education and increased math skills.
Seventy percent of the fastest-growing job areas require education beyond high school, Barr said, and 40 percent of all new jobs will require at least an associate degree.
The difference in income for those with a higher education is huge, he said. Nationally, men with four-year degrees in 2007 earned average salaries of $67,980, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, versus $23,034 for high school dropouts and $35,248 for those with high school diplomas.
To make sure children living in poverty succeed in school, Barr said, they must learn to read early and learn to read well. However, because poor children lack books and access to computers at home, they come to kindergarten already behind their more affluent classmates. Early childhood education is crucial to make sure children are caught up when they enter grade school, he said.
Barr said an atmosphere of rigor and high expectations in school is key to success. Also, a structured summer program that provides library access, tutoring, nutrition and recreation is “essential” to make sure students do not lose what they learned during the school year.
Barr grew up in poverty in Texas, the son of illiterate farmers who did not finish elementary school. He described how, in the first grade, his principal said he had “no ability” and wanted him to repeat the grade.
However, Barr said his teacher believed he could succeed and convinced the principal to let him go on to second grade. Her faith in his abilities gave him a determination that carried him through to finish high school and eventually earn a doctorate.
“Were it not for a first-grade teacher, I’d be a farmer, there’s no doubt in my mind,” he said.
Instead, he has authored or co-authored 12 books, has received three national awards for excellence in teacher education and is a senior analyst with the Boise State University Center for School Improvement.
Also Thursday, schools Superintendent Scott Kizner shared the division’s Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) results and accomplishments. He noted that 249 Martinsville middle-schoolers took algebra or geometry in the 2008-09 school year, compared with 95 students the year before, and the total passing rate was more than 90 percent. These courses are important for setting students on a college-bound path in high school, he said.
Also speaking at the convocation was 2009-10 Teacher of the Year Mischelle Carter, who teaches social studies at Martinsville Middle School.
The world is changing, she said, and “the students we teach today may be very different than those we have taught in the past. Therefore, we must learn to recognize and embrace diversity, and meet every student where they are academically, socially and economically.”
This may require educators to change their strategies, Carter said. “What may have worked in the past may no longer be relevant today,” she said. “It’s up to you to find what does work and make those changes.”
Carter challenged teachers to begin the year with a positive attitude and “do whatever it takes for children to learn.” She also urged them to “tell children continuously how smart and wonderful they are,” because children will live up to high expectations.
Before Barr’s speech at Albert Harris, School Board Chairman Jim Johnson and Martinsville Mayor Kathy Lawson both spoke, praising the division for its AYP success. Johnson and Lawson emphasized that the city’s locally funded 3-year-old preschool program was made possible through a good relationship between the city council and school board. |
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